CLINTON PUTS SQUEEZE ON DEMS CAMPAIGN CASHHaving celebrated Independence Day with a mobile rope line to keep the press away, Hillary Clinton’s campaign is looking to clamp down an iron fist on the purse of Democratic National Committee. The staff behind Clinton, who has seen her poll numbers plummet on trustworthiness, has been “struggling for months to finalize a joint fundraising agreement” with the DNC, Politico reports. The problem: Team Hillary “doesn’t trust the national party structure with the money.”

“The Clinton campaign’s chief administrative officer, Charlie Baker, is serving as the point man to start laying the groundwork for what Clinton aides expect will be an eventual takeover of the national party structure, according to sources familiar with both DNC and Clinton activity. While DNC staffers are officially neutral, most see her as the eventual nominee, and several staffers describe a ‘first among equals’ approach to her when dealing with the primary field. A joint fundraising agreement would enable events to raise the $2,700 maximum for Clinton and the $33,400 level for the DNC from the same donors….The campaign has insisted that any money raised through joint fundraising activities be put in what’s essentially a lockbox until the general election campaign. The DNC wanted access to all the funds immediately.”

Hillaryuncorked? - Campaign insiders tell #mediabuzz” host Howard Kurtz that Clinton has decided to make herself more available to the media and will begin doing national TV interviews in the next week. After an internal debate and realization that keeping her at arm’s length from the press has damaged her campaign, “…a consensus has formed around the notion that allowing more routine access will drain the drama from each encounter.”

[Prologue - The Atlantic’s David Frum contrasts the approach to the press taken by legacy candidates Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush: “[W]hat we’re seeing from these two leading candidates are deep personality traits that developed long before the 2016 campaign began—and will continue into their presidencies, should either win the presidency.”]

Sanders: Clinton is the ‘establishment’ - “Clinton…is the candidate of the Democratic establishment…but I think what is equally interesting is the fact that all over this country, ordinary people, working people, elderly people are moving in our direction because they do want a candidate to take on the establishment.” – Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., on CNN.

[Sanders holds a town meeting in Portland, Maine’s Cross Insurance Arena. The venue was changed from its original location to accommodate a larger number of participant RSVPs.]

O’Malley’s getting Berned -WSJ: “At one time, the former Maryland governor seemed the most viable alternative to Hillary Clinton…Yet [Martin O’Malley] is struggling to get a toehold while the attention and donations from…Bernie Sanders, the 73-year-old senator from Vermont…Mr. Sanders’s backers contend this race is a choice between him and the former secretary of state [Hillary Clinton]; Mr. O’Malley doesn’t figure into their thinking. Mr. Sanders can win the nomination, they say, but if he doesn’t, he may push Mrs. Clinton to the left.”

‘Draft Biden’ builds -Chicago Sun-Times: “Will Pierce, the executive director of the national ‘Draft Biden’ campaign headquartered in Chicago’s Loop, puts enormous meaning into the fact that Vice President Joe Biden has never personally ruled out a 2016 White House run. ‘If he wanted to say no, he would have said it himself,’ Pierce said when we talked. ‘He has not said that yet’…As of last week, Pierce said his group had 10 paid staffers working out of shared office space on the fourth floor of 9 W. Washington St. He has hired directors in the early voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire and has someone on deck for South Carolina. The group has accumulated about 100,000 signatures on petitions imploring Biden to make his third try for the presidency.”

WITH YOUR SECOND CUP OF COFFEE…Belfast-born writer Clive Staples Lewis will have one of his most famous books “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” commemorated with sculptures of his notable characters including Mr. Tumnus, and the White Witch, reports the Belfast Telegraph. Set in a newly designed public square in East Belfast, the characters will be placed in strategic locations throughout that area to reflect their role in the story. Lewis’ contribution to literature was more than just a fantasy story for children’s imaginations, though. His main identity was as a Christian apologetics writer; a type of writing that provides reasoned basis for Christian faith. Christian symbolism bled into his children’s stories, particularly in “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.” The story is supposed to be an allegory of Christ’s resurrection with Aslan the lion representing Jesus Christ. Aslan’s sacrifice for Edmund after he is taken by the White Witch symbolizes the Christian belief that Christ sacrificed himself for their sins. When Aslan is resurrected the Stone Table, depicting the Mosaic Law in the story, breaks representing the end of the stricter Old Testament for the redemption seen in the New Testament of the Bible after Christ’s death.

TRUMP TURMOIL COULD BE AN ASSET Donald Trump’s critical remarks on immigrants and border security continue to stir the political pot. Over the weekend, Trump brought in the death of Kathryn Steinle, the young woman gunned down by an undocumented worker in San Francisco, to prove his point. But most GOP rivals baulked. Former Gov. Jeb Bush, R-Fla., said, “To make these extraordinarily ugly kind of comments is not reflective of the Republican Party. Trump is wrong on this.” Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., added Trump’s comments were, “offensive and inaccurate.” There is understandable cringing within the party, but candidates like Bush and Rubio are also able to use Trump as the bogie man. While advocating secure borders, rivals can increase their appeal to Hispanic voters, pushing their own immigration policy as less extreme. Although Trump fired blistering retorts at Bush and Rubio, and his overall poll numbers are high, his rhetoric may simply result in making him increasingly an outlier and benefit his opponents.

“Hispanics in America and Hispanics in Texas, from the Alamo to Afghanistan, have been extraordinary people, citizens of our country and of our state. They have served nobly.” – Former Gov. Rick Perry, R-Texas, on ABC.

“I salute Donald Trump for focusing on [immigration]. He has a colorful way of speaking. It’s not the way I speak, but I’m not going to engage in the media’s game of throwing rocks and attacking other Republicans. I’m just not going to do it.” – Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, on NBC.

How to confront the Trump - Wash Ex’s David Drucker looks at how the GOP plans to weather the Trump storm in the early campaign cycle. Can they positively distinguish themselves? Or will they be swallowed by his tornado rhetoric? Read here.

[No dinero - WaPo examines how Puerto Rico’s bankruptcy woes are putting the pinch on Sixteeners from both parties.]

Jeb overpays taxes, good for his politics - National Journal: “While Jeb Bush only announced eight months ago that he was ‘actively exploring’ a campaign for president, his tax returns suggest he’s been at least passively considering a White House run for the past eight years – and was willing to fork over possibly millions of dollars to preserve the option. In the process, he has both neutralized the sort of criticism that helped tank Mitt Romney by paying the highest federal rate possible while simultaneously buying the credibility to argue for tax reform that’s born of shared experience with many millions of Americans who believe they're paying the IRS too much.”

[Dems directed fire - The Hill tallied the DNC’s social media mentions of Republican presidential contenders to see whom the group has been hitting the most over the past year: “[Rand Paul] ranks as the DNC’s top target, with 203 mentions. [Chris Christie] follows with 202 attacks, and Bush trails closely behind him with 199.”]

Rubio gets heat from NYT…again - This time it’s about Cuba. The NYT traveled to Cuba to talk to people about Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and how they feel about him. The answer: not good. As one person said, “He’s against Cuba in every possible way. Hillary Clinton understands much more the case of Cuba. Rubio and these Republicans, they are still stuck in 1959.” The piece then went into the Rubio’s family history in Cuba, but Rubio said that the Cuban people’s opinion is no surprise since all their media is state-controlled.

Head of Iowa GOP said that Walker’s lead won’t last -The Hill: “The head of Iowa’s Republican Party does not think Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s lead in polls there will last. Jeff Kaufmann said on Sunday that it’s far too early for the Hawkeye State to have made up its mind. ‘I don’t see that gap between Gov. Walker and the rest of the candidates, I don’t see that holding where it’s at right now,” he said. “I think this thing is going to tighten and that it is going to continue to tighten.’”

Cruz rakes in the cash -USA Today: “Republican Ted Cruz says he’s raised $14.2 million since announcing his presidential campaign in late March, positioning himself as a formidable fundraiser in what’s becoming a crowded field for the GOP nomination. When combined with previously disclosed contributions to super PACs promoting his candidacy, supporters have contributed more than $51 million to help him secure the Republican nomination, his campaign said Sunday.”

Huckabee says marriage made ‘selfish’ - On CNN this Sunday, former Gov. Mike Huckabee, R-Ark., said that the Supreme Court’s decision makes marriage selfish. Huckabee said, “Regardless, heterosexual marriage is largely in trouble today because people see it as a selfish means of pleasing self, rather than a committed relationship in which the focus is on meeting the needs of the partner.”

Jindal well received in Iowa, but unlikely to gain caucus-goers - Des Moines Register: “The governor of Louisiana was encouraged by the reception he received throughout the week, and he said was optimistic about future trips back to the state hosting the first-in-the-nation caucuses…In both Urbandale and Windsor Heights, Jindal eagerly spoke to people in the crowd, oftentimes falling behind the rest of the parade. Many of the people he spoke to, although not positive they will ultimately caucus for him, expressed support because of his conservative values and what they described as his genuine demeanor.”

[Watch Fox: Gov. Bobby Jindal, R-La., will be on “Your World with Neil Cavuto” today at 4 p.m. ET.]

GRAMMAR FOR THE WIN!FOX 28 [West Jefferson, Ohio]: “A West Jefferson woman fought the law and she won. Andrea Cammelleri thought her car was stolen back in February of 2014 when it wasn’t parked outside of her house. However, it had not been stolen; it had been ticketed and towed. She immediately started fighting the ticket…Her truck was towed because she parked on the street for more than 24 hours…The ordinance about parking time limits applies to a ‘motor vehicle camper,’ not a motor vehicle and a camper, because there’s no comma between the two. Last week an appeals judge ruled the ordinance should be read as it’s written, that the parking rules apply to ‘motor vehicle campers’ and not Cammelleri’s truck…The appellate judge in the case wrote in his decision West Jefferson should add a comma if it wants to ticket personal vehicles.”